House's Pet Projects Block Graham's Veto Power, Lawyer Says

September 14, 1985|By Maya Bell, Sentinel Tallahassee Bureau

TALLAHASSEE — While defending Gov. Bob Graham's right to veto single items in the state's school construction bill, an attorney for the governor accused House leaders of trying to protect pet projects.

Attorney John Aurell told the Florida Supreme Court the House's position that Graham cannot veto parts of the bill without striking the entire act is absurd.

The House sued Graham last month because he vetoed $8.8 in projects from the $233 million Public Education Capital Outlay bill. House leaders contend the governor does not have that authority because it is not a general appropriation bill.

Arguing for dismissal, Aurell said the PECO bill was a general appropriation act subject to line-item veto. He said lawmakers were trying to protect their pet projects through creative draftsmanship.

''This is really super logrolling. The Florida Constitution . . . does not permit logrolling in any way, shape or form. It is a constitutional evil of the greatest magnitude,'' he said.

Aurell also argued that without Senate support the House has no legal right to challenge the governor's veto authority. Senate leaders declined to join the suit because they believe Graham has that authority.

House attorney Barry Richard countered that any entity with legal rights and responsibilities can go to court to enforce those rights. He also said the House has adopted a rule authorizing the speaker to file suit for the lower chamber.

Richard insisted the court should be concerned about the ''basic clash of the fundamental powers of two branches of Florida government.''

He told the justices they had a duty to preserve the essential functions of the two branches, according to the U.S. Supreme Court. In the Legislature's case, that entailed the functions of writing laws and setting funding priorities for the state, Richard said.

''It is indisputable that the line-item veto has a massive impact upon that function because to be able to line-item veto is to be able to rewrite the laws the Legislature has written and reorder the funding priorities,'' he said.

Richard said the governor's veto power is not an essential function compelling enough to justify the rewriting of legislation and reordering priorities.

Maintaining that the PECO bill is not a general appropriation bill, Richard said the governor has line-item veto power over the general appropriation bill because without such power he would have to veto the spending bill and bring government to a halt.

But Richard said the governor can strike the PECO bill without interfering with the running of government because the bill ''only builds buildings.''